Happy Days: the 3rd International Beckett Festival will take place in Enniskillen in Northern Ireland from Thursday 31 July – Sunday 10 August 2014.

Klaus Maria Brandauer, Gavin Bryars, Tacita Dean, Adrian Dunbar, Heiner Goebbels, Antony Gormley, The Hilliard Ensemble, Derek Jarman, Netia Jones, Steve McQueen, Fiona Shaw, Peter Stein and John Tomlinson are amongst the artists featured in the programme.

Events and performances will take place in locations around the island town of Enniskillen and the beautiful surrounding landscape of the lake-district in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, the place where Beckett spent his formative years, as a student at the Portora Royal School in Enniskillen.

Opening the festival is a double presentation of Samuel Beckett’s classic Waiting for Godot in two separate productions, one in French and one in Yiddish; En Attendant Godot presented by the Marseilles based Theatre NoNo and Wartn Af Godot will be presented by New Yiddish Rep from New York.

As well as that, highlights include:

A new production of Samuel Beckett’s one act play, Catastrophe, directed by Adrian Dunbar, Festival Artistic Associate, and featuring the theatrical debut of Ceithleann Island Theatre Company, a company of Fermanagh born professional actors, the UK and Irish premiere of Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape, directed by Peter Stein and performed by the legendary Klaus Maria Brandauer, making his first appearance in Ireland.

John Cage’s masterpiece Roaratorio: An Irish Circus on Finnegans Wake will be presented as a sound installation in the spectacular underground caves of Marble Arch. Excerpts from the dance version of the piece created by Merce Cunningham will also be presented artists from the local Dylan Quinn Dance Theatre in this special location.

Heiner Goebbels and the Hilliard Ensemble will present the third and last section of Goebbels’ acclaimed music-theatre work, I Went into the House but did not enter, produced by the Theatre Vidy Lausanne.

Gavin Bryars, the Festival’s composer in residence will present three concerts in three churches in Enniskillen. The opening concert: Celebrating Godot, will feature his most popular work, Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet in a special performance by the Gavin Bryars Ensemble with guests, Yurodny and The Crash Ensemble.

Four leading visual artists will be featured in the programme: Tacita Dean, Antony Gormley, Steve McQueen and Gerard Byrne, with exhibitions in locations across Enniskillen and there will be an opportunity to view an installation featuring Derek Jarman’s film, Waiting For Waiting For Godot (1983) at St Macartin’s Cathedral Hall.

In a special international project, Awake All Finnegans calls upon all Finnegans (and Finns) in the world to join in a continuous reading of the whole of Finnegans Wake, starting at 10 am on 1 August and ending on at 6 pm on 10 August.

And so much more!

The whole town of Enniskillen will participate in the Festival, including high street shops and restaurants, which will respond with such ideas as Beckett burgers at the local butcher, barbers doing Beckett haircuts, Clov and Hamm Sandwiches at the café.